History, 1838–1856, volume B-1
[1 September 1834–2 November 1838]

addition to the church laws, respecting
church business; March 28
verily I say unto you, says the Lord of Hosts, There must needs be
presiding elders, to preside over those who are of the office of an elder;
and also priests to preside over those who are of the office of a priest;
and also teachers to preside over those who are of the office of a
teacher, in like manner; and also the deacons; wherefore from deacon
to teacher, and from teacher to priest, and from priest to elder,
severally as they are appointed, according to the covenants and
commandments of the church; then comes the high priesthood, which is the
greatest of all. Wherefore, it must needs be that one be appointed, of
the high priesthood, to preside over the priesthood; and he shall be
called president of the high priesthood of the church, or, in other words,
the presiding high priest over the high priesthood of the church. From the
same comes the administering of ordinances, and blessings upon the
church, by the laying on of the hands.

Office and duty of a Bishop.
32. Wherefore the office of a bishop is not equal unto it; for the office
of a bishop is in administering all temporal things; nevertheless, a
bishop must be chosen from the high priesthood, unless he is a literal
descendant of Aaron; for, unless he is a literal descendant of Aaron, he
cannot hold the keys of that priesthood. Nevertheless, a high priest, that
is after the order of Melchisedek, may be set apart unto the
ministering of temporal things, having a knowledge of them by the
spirit of truth, and also to be a judge in israel, to do the business of
the church to sit in judgment upon transgressors, upon testimony, as it
shall be laid before him, according to the laws, by the assistance of his
counsellors, whom he has chosen, or will chose among the elders of the
Church. This is the duty of a bishop, who is not a literal descendant
of Aaron, but has been ordained to the high priesthood after the
order of Melchisedek.

The Bishop shall be a Judge.
33. Thus shall he be a judge, even a common judge among the inhabitants of
Zion, or in a stake of Zion, or in any branch of the church where he shall
be set apart unto this ministry, until the borders of Zion are enlarged,
and it becomes necessary to have other bishops, or judges is
in Zion, or else-where; and inasmuch
as there are other bishops appointed they shall act in the same
office.

Descendants of Aaron have a legal right to
the Bishopric
34. But a literal descendant of Aaron has a legal right to the presidency
of this priesthood, to the keys of this ministry, to act in the office of
Bishop independently, without counsellors, except in a case where
the president of the high priesthood after
the order of Melchisedek, is tried; to sit as a judge in Israel. And the
decision of either of these Councils, agreeably to the commandment which
says;
[p. 586]

addition to the church laws, respecting
church business; <March 28>
verily I say unto you, says the Lord of Hosts, There must needs be
presiding elders, to preside over those who are of the office of an elder;
and also priests to preside over those who are of the office of a priest;
and also teachers to preside over those who are of the office of a
teacher, in like manner; and also the deacons; wherefore from deacon
to teacher, and from teacher to priest, and from priest to elder,
severally as they are appointed, according to the covenants and
commandments of the church; then comes the high priesthood, which is the
greatest of all. Wherefore, it must needs be that one be appointed, of
the high priesthood, to preside over the priesthood; and he shall be
called president of the high priesthood of the church, or, in other words,
the presiding high priest over the high priesthood of the church. From the
same comes the administering of ordinances, and blessings upon the
church, by the laying on of the hands.

<Office and duty of a Bishop.>
32. Wherefore the office of a bishop is not equal unto it; for the office
of a bishop is in administering all temporal things; nevertheless, a
bishop must be chosen from the high priesthood, unless he is a literal
descendant of Aaron; for, unless he is a literal descendant of Aaron, he
cannot hold the keys of that priesthood. Nevertheless, a high priest, that
is after the order of Melchisedek, may be set apart unto the
ministering of temporal things, having a knowledge of them by the
spirit of truth, and also to be a judge in israel, to do the business of
the church to sit in judgment upon transgressors, upon testimony, as it
shall be laid before him, according to the laws, by the assistance of his
counsellors, whom he has chosen, or will chose among the elders of the
Church. This is the duty of a bishop, who is not a literal descendant
of Aaron, but has been ordained to the high priesthood after the
order of Melchisedek.

<The Bishop shall be a Judge.>
33. Thus shall he be a judge, even a common judge among the inhabitants of
Zion, or in a stake of Zion, or in any branch of the church where he shall
be set apart unto this ministry, until the borders of Zion are enlarged,
and it becomes necessary to have other bishops, or judges is
[in] Zion, or else-where; and inasmuch
as there are other bishops appointed they shall act in the same
office.

<Descendants of Aaron have a legal right to
the Bishopric>
34. But a literal descendant of Aaron has a legal right to the presidency
of this priesthood, to the keys of this ministry, to act in the office of
Bishop independently, without counsellors, except in a case where
a the president of the high priesthood after
the order of Melchisedek, is tried; to sit as a judge in Israel. And the
decision of either of these Councils, agreeably to the commandment which
says;
[p. 586]

This document, volume B-1, is
the second of the six volumes of the “Manuscript History of the Church.” The
collection was compiled over the span of seventeen years,
1838 to 1856. The narrative in
volume B-1 begins with the entry for 1 September
1834, just after the conclusion of the Camp of Israel (later called
Zion’s Camp), and continues to 2 November
1838, when
JS was interned as a prisoner of war at
Far
West

Originally called Shoal Creek. Located fifty-five miles northeast of Independence. Surveyed 1823; first settled by whites, 1831. Site purchased, 8 Aug. 1836, before Caldwell Co. was organized for Latter-day Saints in Missouri. William W. Phelps and John Whitmer...

, serving as
JS’s “private secretary and historian,” completed
the account of JS’s history contained in volume A-1 in August 1843. It covered the period from JS’s birth in
1805 through the aftermath of the Camp of Israel
in August 1834. When work resumed on the
history on 1 October 1843, Richards started
a new volume, eventually designated B-1.

At the time of
JS’s death in June
1844, the account had been advanced to 5
August 1838, on page 812 of volume B-1.
Richards

, assisted by
Thomas
Bullock, resumed gathering the records and reports needed to draft the
history. Richards then composed and drafted roughed-out notes while Thomas
Bullock compiled the text of the history and inscribed it in B-1. They
completed their work on the volume on or about 24
February 1845. Richards,
Willmer
Benson, and
Jonathan Grimshaw later added ten pages of
“Addenda,” which provided notes, extensive revisions, or additional text to be
inserted in the original manuscript where indicated.

Though
JS did not dictate or revise any of the text
recorded in B-1,
Willard Richards

and
Thomas
Bullock chose to maintain the first-person, chronological narrative
format established in A-1 as if JS were the author. They drew from a variety of
primary and secondary sources including JS’s diaries and letters, minutes of
meetings, the first edition of the Doctrine and Covenants, church and other
periodicals, reports of JS’s discourses, and the reminiscences and
recollections of church members. As was the case with A-1, after JS’s death,
Brigham
Young

1 June 1801–29 Aug. 1877. Carpenter, painter, glazier, colonizer. Born at Whitingham, Windham Co., Vermont. Son of John Young and Abigail (Nabby) Howe. Brought up in Methodist household; later joined Methodist church. Moved to Sherburne, Chenango Co., New...

14 June 1801–22 June 1868. Blacksmith, potter. Born at Sheldon, Franklin Co., Vermont. Son of Solomon Farnham Kimball and Anna Spaulding. Married Vilate Murray, 22 Nov. 1822, at Mendon, Monroe Co., New York. Member of Baptist church at Mendon, 1831. Baptized...

26 June 1817–1 Sept. 1875. Born at Potsdam, St. Lawrence Co., New York. Son of John Smith and Clarissa Lyman. Baptized into LDS church by Joseph H. Wakefield, 10 Sept. 1832, at Potsdam. Moved to Kirtland, Geauga Co., Ohio, 1833. Labored on Kirtland temple...

, and others modified and
corrected the manuscript as they reviewed material before its eventual
publication.

Beginning in March
1842 the church’s Nauvoo periodical, the Times and
Seasons, began publishing the narrative as the “History of Joseph Smith.”
It was also published in England in the church
periodical the Millennial Star beginning in
June 1842. Once a press was established in
Utah and the Deseret News began
publication, the “History of Joseph Smith” once more appeared in print in
serialized form. Beginning with the November
1851 issue, the narrative picked up where the Times
and Seasons had left off over five years earlier.

The narrative recorded in B-1 continued the story of
JS’s life as the prophet and president of the
church he labored to establish. The account encompasses significant
developments in the church’s two centers at that time—Kirtland

Located ten miles south of Lake Erie. Settled by 1811. Organized by 1818. Population in 1830 about 55 Latter-day Saints and 1,000 others; in 1838 about 2,000 Saints and 1,200 others; in 1839 about 100 Saints and 1,500 others. Mormon missionaries visited township...

Area acquired by U.S. in Louisiana Purchase, 1803, and established as territory, 1812. Missouri Compromise, 1820, admitted Missouri as slave state, 1821. Population in 1830 about 140,000; in 1836 about 240,000; and in 1840 about 380,000. Mormon missionaries...

—during a four-year-span. Critical
events included the organization of the Quorums of the Twelve Apostles and the
Seventy, the dedication of the House of the Lord in Kirtland, Ohio, the
establishment of the Kirtland Safety Society, dissension and apostasy in
Kirtland and Missouri, the first mission to England,
JS’s flight from Kirtland to Missouri in the
winter of 1838, the Saints’
exodus from Kirtland later that year, the disciplining of the Missouri
presidency, and the outbreak of the Missouri War and arrest of JS. Thus, B-1
provides substantial detail regarding a significant period of church expansion
and transition as well as travail.

and
Thomas
Bullock; 297 pages, plus 10 pages of addenda; CHL. This is the second
volume of a six-volume manuscript history of the church. This second volume
covers the period from 1
September 1834 to 2 November 1838; the subsequent four volumes, labeled
C-1 through F-1, continue through 8 August
1844.